学进去

Handwritten notes in class might seem outdated as digital technology involves nearly every aspect of learning. But a steady stream of research suggests that compared with typing, taking notes with pen and paper is still a better way to learn. And scientists are zeroing in on why.

In a recently published study, scientists found that those writing by hand had higher levels of electrical activity across many interconnected brain regions. They added 256 sensors into a hairnet, which helped monitor 36 students’ brains as they wrote or typed words displayed on a screen. When students wrote by hand, the sensors picked up widespread brain connectivity including visual regions, regions that receive and process sensory information, and the motor cortex (运动皮层) . Typing, however, resulted in minimal activity in these brain regions.

Across many contexts, studies have shown that students appear to learn better when they’re asked to produce letters or other visual items using their fingers and hands. The educational neuroscientist Sophia Vinci-Booher says the recent study highlights the clear tie between motor action and conceptual recognition: “As you’re drawing a letter or writing a word, you’re taking this perceptual (感知的) understanding of something and using your motor system to create it. That creation is then fed back into the visual system, where it’s processed again — strengthening the connection between an action and the images or words associated with it.”

The new findings don’t mean technology is always a disadvantage in the classroom. Laptops, smartphones, and other such devices can be more efficient for writing essays and can offer fairer access to educational resources. But people now increasingly tend to “offload” mental tasks to digital devices, such as by taking a photograph instead of committing information to memory, says Yadurshana Sivashankar at the University of Waterloo in Ontario. “If we’re not actively using these areas, then they are going to worsen over time, whether it’s memory or motor skills.”

1．What is the function of the sensors in the recent study according to Paragraph 2?

A．To record brain activity.	B．To activate brain waves.
C．To connect visual regions.	D．To process sensory information.

2．What is the finding of the recent study according to Sophia Vinci-Booher?

A．One’s motor system boosts his creativity.	B．One’s writing action enhances his perception.
C．Learning performance relies on visual memory.	D．Concrete images contributes to comprehension.

3．What does the underlined word “offload” in Paragraph 4 mean?

A．Owe.

B．Link.

C．Shift.

D．Bring.

4．Which of the following can be the best title for the text?

A．Note-taking: the key to a good grade	B．Digital learning: beneficial or harmful
C．Typing vs handwriting: efficiency counts	D．Handwritten notes: conventional but effective